Destiny Carrillo (left) and Randi Arrisola get ready for a serve from the Annapolis Lady Warriors during Tuesday’s home opener for the Pettus girls. The Bee County ladies won in three straight sets to open the season at 1-0.

Lady Eagle Abby Cantu strikes a serve during Tuesday night’s match with Annapolis in Pettus. The Lady Eagles won in their straight sets, thanks to their serving and defensive work, according to the coaches.

PETTUS – It was the opening match of the season, and both coaches would probably say their teams suffered from a case of the first-match jitters.

The Pettus Lady Eagles were up against the visiting Annapolis Lady Warriors on Tuesday evening and were able to rally late to capture a 3-0 victory in the best of five varsity match.

Annapolis played competitively in all three sets but could not topple or shake the confidence of the Lady Eagles. The Pettus girls earned a 25-15 win in the first set. Annapolis kept after the Lady Eagles, but the hosts’ return of serve, defense and service game was too much for the Warriors. Pettus captured set two, 25-17, with a late run for a 2-0 lead.

“We played pretty good. It was a definite improvement from the two earlier scrimmages we had,” said Pettus head coach Erica Garza.

“We still need to jell as a team.”

The third contest was close in the early going. Both teams put together small runs to keep things interesting and the winner in doubt. Annapolis led late, but a few serves and defensive stands by the Lady Eagles put them over the top for a 25-20 victory in set three for the match.

Librero Destiny Carrillo, Madi Garza and Randi Arrisola return this year to bring a little experience to the team.

The Pettus girls are hosting their own varsity tournament on Thursday and Saturday with teams from Nordheim, McMullen County, Agua Dulce, Skidmore-Tynan, Runge, Ben Bolt and Prairie Lea all competing. Pool play was played on Thursday to seed the teams for Saturday’s finals. The championship match is set for 7 p.m. Saturday.

On Tuesday, the Lady Eagles will travel to Skidmore to tangle with Bee County rivals the Lady Cats. The JV girls get things started at 5 p.m. with the varsity match to follow.